Mitch Hawker's steel roller coaster poll 2013 !

[Xcoaster]

This was a lot harder for me than the wooden poll, partly because I've never done the steel poll before, and partly because there's just so many good steel coasters (especially after you cut out the kiddies and lump all the clones together). I ended up ranking my first 100-ish and the last 5, then the rest I just lumped together in a few in-between tiers (good, decent, meh, bad). Here's my top 30 and bottom 5:

1. New Texas Giant Six Flags Over Tex

2. Expedition GeForce Holiday Park

3. Favorite Wood Coaster (Boulderdash, Lake Compounce)

4. Intimidator 305 Kings Dominion

5. Skyrush Hersheypark

6. Maverick Cedar Point

7. Eejanaika Fujikyu HighLands

8. Bizarro SF New England

9. Euro-Mir Europa-Park

10. Kawasemi Tobu Zoo

11. Nemesis Alton Towers

12. Millennium Force Cedar Point

13. iSpeed Mirabilandia

14. X2 Six Flags Magic Mo

15. Nitro Six Flags Great Ad

16. Goliath Walibi Holland

17. Space Fantasy Universal Studios

18. Blue Fire Megacoaster Europa Park

19. Olympia Looping Traveling

20. Storm Runner Hersheypark

21. Phantom's Revenge Kennywood Park

22. Takabisha Fujikyu HighLands (this fell a few spots this year)

23. Raptor Gardaland

24. Superman - Ride of St Six Flags America

25. Ride of Steel Darien Lake

26. Steel Dragon 2000 Nagashima Spa Land (this also fell quite a bit this year)

27. Goliath Six Flags Over Geo

28. Pyrenees Parque EspaNa

29. Katun Mirabilandia

30. Dominator Kings Dominion

 

-5. Mirage Rosso Zoosafari Fasanola

-4. Fav Zamperla Volare Any Park Anywhere

-3. Fav Vekoma Corkscrew Any Park Anywhere

-2. Fav Vek Susp Loop SLC Any Park Anywhere

-1. Goudurix Parc Asterix

[_koppen]

I forgot to say, but this ride is by far the worst on my list.

 

Such a waste of an awesome looking ride, that had all the potential to be awesome!

[CedarPoint27]

Skyrush and Maverick look like they're gonna be big contenders this year.

[_koppen]

My GF did hers, forgot about the favorite wood coaster though.

 

Piraten Djurs Sommerland DK,y,y,1

Black Mamba Phantasialand DE,y,n,2

Blue Fire Megacoaster Europa Park DE,y,n,3

Juvelen Djurs Sommerland DK,y,y,4

Insane Grona Lund SE,y,n,5

Speed Monster Tusenfryd NO,y,y,6

Expedition GeForce Holiday Park DE,y,n,7

Krake Heide Park DE,y,n,8

Lisebergbanan Liseberg SE,y,y,9

Jetline Grona Lund SE,y,n,10

Lynet Farup Sommerland DK,y,y,11

Winjas - Fear Phantasialand DE,y,n,12

Winjas - Force Phantasialand DE,y,n,13

Euro-Sat Europa-Park DE,y,n,14

Desert Race Heide Park DE,y,n,15

Daemonen Tivoli Gardens DK,y,y,16

Silver Star Europa-Park DE,y,n,17

Nessie Hansa-Park DE,y,n,18

Kanonen Liseberg SE,y,y,19

Orkanen Farup Sommerland DK,y,y,20

Vilda Musen Grona Lund SE,y,n,21

Thor's Hammer Djurs Sommerland DK,y,y,22

Tranan Skara Sommarland SE,y,y,23

Drachenritt Belantis DE,y,n,24

Poseidon Europa-Park DE,y,n,25

Skatteoen Djurs Sommerland DK,y,y,26

Fav Mack Supersplash Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,27

Colorado Adventure Phantasialand DE,y,n,28

Temple of Nighthawk Phantasialand DE,y,n,29

Schweizer Bobbahn Heide Park DE,y,n,30

Euro-Mir Europa-Park DE,y,n,31

Fav Skyloop XT 150 Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,32

Schweizer Bobbahn Europa-Park DE,y,n,33

Fav Vek Susp Loop SLC Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,34

Matterhorn Blitz Europa-Park DE,y,n,35

Sky Rider Skyline Park DE,y,n,36

Fav Wildcat Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,37

Fav Wild Mouse Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,38

Fav Jet Star (any) Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,39

Fav Spinning Mouse Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,40

Fav Vekoma Corkscrew Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,41

Cobra Tivoli Friheden DK,y,y,42

Huracan Belantis DE,y,n,43

[JJLehto]

You're not alone Yankeeman, in fact I've noticed it seems most enthusiasts find MForce overrated. Usually they gripe how it's some GP love fest that's not real good.

Millennium Forceless and etc

 

I think I've only seen a handful of others that are insane like me and have it still as their #1 (granted I've not ridden a couple yet that could top it). Honestly, I get it. I see why many would say that, it's not an AT machine, isn't real forceful, it's old now and doens't have that WOW factor it used to. IDK but I just love it! Smooth as glass, great pace, has enough AT for me, the layout IMO is done well. There are probably better coasters but, they all have some issue for me: I305 is epic but just not as much outright fun, I can ride MForce endlessly. Skyrush too short, Boulder Dash was fun but underwhelming (I need to try it again). El Toro is a close close 2nd.

 

Maybe Bizarro at SFNE will knock it off when I finally get my ass up there!

[coasterbill]

I think I've only seen a handful of others that are insane like me and have it still as their #1

 

I still have it at #1 overall (just barely though because El Toro is so damn amazing) and #1 steel by a wide margin. Personally I love the feeling of speed, which is probably why I've ranked Kingda Ka and Top Thrill Dragster higher than most people.

 

To me, there's no coaster that feels like it's going as fast as Millennium Force for such a long time. I305 is close I guess, but it's in an open field. Millennium Force is flying through tunnels, by trees and buildings (and now dinosaurs) which enhances the feeling of speed even more. Plus, I love riding it in the back and getting yanked through the overbanks.

 

Oh, and Millennium Force does have airtime. I don't know why people are convinced that it doesn't. If you ride it in the back later in the day you get some very good airtime on multiple hills. It's not like it's El Toro airtime (nothing is)... I wouldn't call it an airtime machine or anything and where you sit on the train and when you ride it is a factor (which I know some people don't like to factor in when they rank coasters and I totally respect their argument) but the ride gives very good airtime in addition to it's relentless speed.

 

I guess I understand why some people don't like it as much as I do but I absolutely love that coaster.

[rcjp]

Personally I love the feeling of speed, which is probably why I've ranked Kingda Ka and Top Thrill Dragster higher than most people.

I've also ranked them pretty high (5 and 6) and the only thing that stops me from putting them higher is obviously their ridiculous length, but for me there's nothing quite like the sheer violence of 128 mph winds and entering the top hat at full speed

[cfc]

To me, Kingda Ka is more of an endurance test than a ride. I much prefer Top Thrill Dragster, Xcelerator, and Storm Runner.

[rcjp]

^I actually ranked it just above TTD because of that. I love its intensity and I haven't quite figured out why I find it more intense than TTD.

But storm runner, for me, was better (2nd compared to 5th).

[cfc]

^Kingda Ka definitely crosses the "intensity" line for me, but to each his own.

[yankeeman311]

I think my problem with Millennium Force is that I'm an airtime junkie. The sensation of speed isn't enough for me to rank it high. My top 5 wooden coasters are what I feel have the best airtime of the ones I've been on, Skyrush tops my steel list for having insane airtime and Magnum/Nitro both have very solid airtime to put them high on my list.

 

The lone exception for me seems to be Maverick which isn't an airtime coaster but I also love the feeling of being out of control which that coaster does better than any other I've been on. Millennium Force has very minimal airtime and fails to provide that out of control feeling for me. It's just a fast coaster that the wind annoys me on.

 

My point is it really all depends on what sensations you prefer. If you love speed like Bill, Milly is your coaster. If you love airtime like me then Skyrush and El Toro are going to be your rides.

[TyRush]

I really love seeing Skyrush getting big credit so far. Even though people complain about the "tightness", go beyond that and it is one of, if not the most intense airtime on any coaster. I love seeing Intamin at the top of everyone's lists too, they definitely think outside the box the best and produce great intense fun rides.

[coasterbill]

I'm looking forward to re-riding Skyrush in a different seat because this year I rode it in a middle wing seat and really had a hard time enjoying it but given all of the positive reviews it's getting I'm hoping I feel differently after giving it another chance.

[arby]

I'm looking forward to riding SkyRush again, too, based on some feedback from here. I did experience tightness to the point of pain partway through that all I could think about was wanting to get off the ride. I can't way to try some of those techniques to see if I can just enjoy the ride the whole way through

[rcjp]

^The best "technique" I could come up with was grabbing the bars on the side of the restraint which would relieve the pain a lot. Still, I like to ride coasters (especially the most intense ones) with my hands up and even if I don't, I don't want to have to hold on to the restraints in order to avoid pain. Skyrush is an awesome ride, the most intense I've been on and definitely the best if it didn't hurt, but if nothing serious is done to improve comfort I'm afraid it will never reach my top spot (it's no 3 right now) as that can't be a coaster that gives me serious pain during every airtime hill.

I really would like this issue to be solved even though I won't be riding it again anytime soon

[Angle O. Descent]

^ I just flex my thigh muscles when the attendants drive the lapbar down into me, then relax once it's down. It's helps somewhat.

[CPmillenia94]

Maybe Bizarro at SFNE will knock it off when I finally get my A$$ up there!

 

It wont. Mind Eraser is more thrilling to me.

 

Honestly though idk what happened but the second half of that ride just crawls compared to what it used to be like, and even though there is airtime still it just feels like its dragging through everything. Those helixes are the worst pace killers.. In fact, I didn't even completely appreciate how much worse it had gotten until I rode SFA's S:ROS and found it to be better in every way. The last three hills on that ride were crazier than the whole sum of bizarro's current ride experience.

 

Regarding Millennium "Forceless" it has picked up pace a bit in the past few years I'd say, and there was already decent airtime on all the hills before. If people say MF doesn't have airtime then in that case every B&M hyper has no airtime either considering that MF's is both stronger and more sustained than any B&M hyper I have ridden (except possibly nitro's hill after the hammerhead).

[rcjp]

^ I just flex my thigh muscles when the attendants drive the lapbar down into me, then relax once it's down. It's helps somewhat.

The problem I have is not how tight it is because unless you hold on to it with all your strengths it will tighten right on the bottom of the first drop. The problem is the lapbar itself: its shape, as the area in contact with your legs is way to small increasing the pressure; and also the part of your thighs where it sits which is way to far from your hips, causing even more pressure and more pain as that part of your legs is more sensitive.

 

Let me try to explain with a drawing: the black lines are your body, the red rectangles are the seats, the green arrow indicates the direction your body is trying to go during an airtime hill and the red arrow represents the force the restraint has to do on your leg depending on where it is placed and, as you can see, the closer it is to the knees, the bigger the force has to be.

[King]

My top 15.

 

1. Maverick

2. Intimidator 305

3. Millennium Force

4. New Texas Giant

5. Kumba

6. Kingda Ka

7. Top Thrill Dragster

8. Nitro

9. Superman - Ride of Steel (SFA)

10. Montu

11. Raptor

12. Diamondback

13. Goliath (SFoG)

14. Alpengeist

15. SheiKra

[gerstlaueringvar]

Did anyone noticed that NTaG is falling down? An accident wouldn't change the fact that it is a great coaster. I hardly see people put it in top 3 anymore.

Edited March 6, 2014 by gerstlaueringvar

[Woodie Warrior]

Did Anton's noticed that NTaG is falling down? An accident wouldn't change the fact that it is a great coaster. I hardly see people put it in top 3 anymore.

 

I looked through the past pages and every rider who had ridden it put it in their top 5 and most in the top 3.

[rcjp]

Did anyone noticed that NTaG is falling down? An accident wouldn't change the fact that it is a great coaster. I hardly see people put it in top 3 anymore.

You're right. Given that the voters are mostly coaster enthusiasts I doubt the accident would have an influence so I too don't really why this is happening.

[King]

Did anyone noticed that NTaG is falling down? An accident wouldn't change the fact that it is a great coaster. I hardly see people put it in top 3 anymore.

 

I don't think anyone on this site would hold that against a coaster unless it's a design error. That's not the case for NTaG (NTG). And I'm still upset about Dragon Challenge not dueling.

[Randomman295]

Just finished mine.

 

Forces:

Floating Airtime___________________________,y,y,1

Out of Control Feeling/Directional Changes_,y,y,2

Abrupt Airtime_____________________________,y,y,3

Sensation of Speed_________________________,y,y,4

Positive G's/Loops_________________________,y,y,5

Lateral Forces_____________________________,y,y,6

 

Top Twenty:

Hollywood Rip Ride Ro Universal Studios FL,y,y,1

Tatsu Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,n,2

Silver Bullet Knott's Berry Farm CA,y,y,3

X2 Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,n,4

Poltergeist Six Flags Fiesta T TX,y,y,5

Magnum XL-200 Cedar Point OH,y,n,6

Maverick Cedar Point OH,y,n,7

Superman:Krypton Cstr Six Flags Fiesta T TX,y,y,8

Favorite Wood Coaster Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,9 (Apocalypse, SFMM)

Manta SeaWorld San Diego CA,y,n,10

Wild Thing Valleyfair! MN,y,n,11

Incredible Hulk Islands of Adventu FL,y,y,12

Iron Rattler Six Flags Fiesta T TX,y,y,13

Rock n Roller Coaster Disney's H Studios FL,y,y,14

Fav Intamin Impulse Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,15 (Steel Venom, Valleyfair)

XCelerator Knott's Berry Farm CA,y,y,16

Space Mountain Disneyland CA,y,n,17

Riddler's Revenge Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,n,18

Ninja Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,n,19

California Screamin' Disney CA Adventur CA,y,y,20

 

Bottom Ten:

Expedition Everest Disney Animal King FL,y,n,43

Fav Wildcat Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,44 (Cedar Point's, does this count?)

Revolution Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,n,45

Superman: Escape From Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,n,46

Fav Vekoma Boomerang Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,47 (Knott's)

Goliath Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,n,48

Pony Express Knott's Berry Farm CA,y,n,49

Patriot Castles N' Coaster AZ,y,y,50

Excalibur Valleyfair! MN,y,n,51

Journey to Atlantis SeaWorld San Diego CA,y,n,52

[TroyWD98]

This list is gonna be so different after this year after I've ridden coasters like Helix, SkyRush, Bizarro, Nitro, Storm Runner etc.

Most the top coasters I'll ride this year are wooden but there's definitely some highly anticipated steel coasters for me in the mix.

 

 

Millennium Force Cedar Point OH,y,y,1

Maverick Cedar Point OH,y,y,2

X2 Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,3

Top Thrill Dragster Cedar Point OH,y,y,4

Magnum XL-200 Cedar Point OH,y,y,5

XCelerator Knott's Berry Farm CA,y,y,6

Full Throttle Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,7

Thunder Dolphin LaQua JP,y,n,8

Raging Bull Six Flags Great Am IL,y,y,9

GateKeeper Cedar Point OH,y,y,10

Tatsu Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,11

California Screamin' Disney CA Adventur CA,y,y,12

Favorite Wood Coaster Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,13

Gemini Cedar Point OH,y,y,14

X-Flight Six Flags Great Am IL,y,y,15

Raptor Cedar Point OH,y,y,16

Goliath Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,17

Fav Intamin Impulse Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,18

Superman: Escape From Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,19

Fav Giant Inv. Boom Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,20

Silver Bullet Knott's Berry Farm CA,y,y,21

Space Mountain Disneyland CA,y,y,22

Manta SeaWorld San Diego CA,y,n,23

Sierra Sidewnder Knott's Berry Farm CA,y,y,24

Riddler's Revenge Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,25

Fav Schw Shuttle loop Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,26

Fav Spinning Mouse Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,27

Batman The Ride/Clone SF & Other Parks **,y,y,28

Big Thunder Mountain Disneyland CA,y,n,29

Matterhorn Bobsleds Disneyland CA,y,y,30

Revenge of the Mummy Universal Studios CA,y,y,31

Superman - Ultimate F Six Flags Parks **,y,n,32

Roller Coaster New York New York NV,y,n,33

Canyon Blaster Adventuredome NV,y,n,34

Journey to Atlantis SeaWorld San Diego CA,y,n,35

Scream! Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,36

Fav Loop-Screw Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,37

Fav Wild Mouse Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,38

Ninja Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,39

Green Lantern:1st Fl. Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,40

Iron Dragon Cedar Point OH,y,y,41

Revolution Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,42

Dark Knight Six Flags Parks **,y,n,43

Pony Express Knott's Berry Farm CA,y,y,44

Mantis Cedar Point OH,y,y,45

Fav Windstorm Any Park Anywhere **,y,n,46

Fav Vekoma Boomerang Any Park Anywhere **,y,y,47

Viper Six Flags Magic Mo CA,y,y,48

Desperado Buffalo Bill's Res NV,y,n,49